The Mitsubishi Mirage (Colt)
1978
Mitsubishi Mirage Colt History
Mitsubishi Mirage Colt Upgrades
The body design was developed around a stable trapezoidal shape and featured a low-drag slant nose and flush surface panels. The use of jumbo-size doors, narrow pillars and a large glazing area gave the Mirage a very bright and comfortable interior. As Mitsubishi Motors' first front-engine/ front-drive model, an "idle" transfer shaft and reverse rotation gear had to be fitted for the rear-drive engine to be positioned transversely. Using this as an auxiliary transmission saw the debut of the Super Shift transmission, which had a secondary shift level that allowed the driver to change between Power and Economy ranges to give high performance and low fuel consumption. The Mirage had independent suspension all round, using a new U-type multi-link arrangement at the rear.
Mitsubishi Mirage Colt Further models
Mirage Colt A, 4-door hatchback model was added to the lineup in 1978, followed by 1.6 L and 3-speed AT models in 1979. Joining the lineup in 1982 were a 4-door sedan named Mirage II, powered by a 1.4 L turbo engine, and the Modulated Displacement (MD) engine that switched from 4- to 2-cylinder operation at low engine loads. This engine boasted a Japan 10-mode driving cycle consumption of 20 km/L.